Politics

ZAGREB, Oct 2, 2020 - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told the press in Dubrovnik on Friday that he was negative for coronavirus and that he felt great at the start of a day-long visit to Croatia. Pompeo arrived at Dubrovnik Airport from Italy, which he had officially visited as part of a European tour. After US President Donald Trump said he was positive for coronavirus, Pompeo and his wife were tested on the plane and both are negative. Pompeo and Trump last met in mid-September. In Dubrovnik's Old Town, he was met by Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman.…

ZAGREB, Oct 1, 2020 - Increasing pensions and changing the pension indexation model in relation to the average wage are some of the key topics to be discussed by the National Council for Pensioners and Elderly Persons, which held its first session on Thursday, on the International Day of Older Persons. Associations of pensioners and the trade union of pensioners  SUH welcome the establishment of the national council as an advisory body to the government, said SUH head, Jasna Petrovic, ahead of the Council's session, held in the building of the Ministry of Labour, Pension System, Family Affairs and Social Policy. She…

ZAGREB, Oct 1, 2020 - The U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will stop in Dubrovnik on Friday as part of his European tour, and he will be received by Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlic Radman, and a few more senior officials. The abolishment of visas for the Croatians traveling to the USA, Croatia's plan to purchase fighter jets, the LNG terminal off Krk, and Croatia's plans to introduce 5G network are likely to be some of the topics between Pompeo, who is the highest U.S. official to visit Croatia since the start of…

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 30th of September, 2020, Croatian citizens have made it quite clear that they trust the various EU institutions more than they trust the actual Croatian Government, according to a survey conducted by Eurofound which is based in the Irish city of Dublin. Eurofound is otherwise Europe's leading NGO for labour market and quality of life research, Vecernji list reported. On a scale of one to ten, Croatian citizens rated their government at a somewhat unimpressive 2.9, while giving the leadership of the European Union a significantly higher (although still not high in itself) score…

ZAGREB, Sept 30, 2020 - The European Commission criticizes Croatia over corruption and says that its fight against corruption is insufficient, however, the Croatian justice system has made progress on reducing backlogs. The first annual report on the rule of law in the European Union's member states, which the EC released on Wednesday, covers the following four pillars: Justice System, Anti-Corruption Framework, Media Pluralism, and Other Institutional Issues related to Checks and Balances. The country chapter on Croatia includes serious objections to the Anti-Corruption Framework. "Croatia has the legal and policy framework to promote integrity and prevent corruption in the public sector broadly in place. A…

ZAGREB, Sept 30, 2020 - The Andrej Plenkovic government on Wednesday launched procedures to conclude the double taxation convention between Croatia and the USA for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income. Finance Minister Zdravko Maric told the press before the government's meeting that the conclusion of the Convention would lead to many benefits in the taxation of all kinds of income and to the improvement of conditions for boosting bilateral trade. "This is a great signal for investors. We are tackling the matter that has been present for more than two and…

As Ana Blaskovic/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 29th of September, 2020, with Croatia's entry into the Eurozone, currency and credit risks will be significantly reduced, and pension fund assets will become significantly more liquid. This is the message taken from the third ''Financial Brunch'' of the Association of Pension Fund Management Companies and Pension Insurance Companies (UMFO) on the subject of the euro. ''The assets of mandatory pension funds are slowly outgrowing the domestic capital market, especially in terms of limiting currency exposure. The assets of mandatory pension funds have grown by 216 percent since 2010, while GDP has cumulatively…

ZAGREB, Sept 29, 2020 - Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic said on Tuesday security in Croatia was not undermined "in these extraordinary circumstances and special epidemiological conditions", also underlining the importance of combating corruption and illegal migration. Speaking at a ceremony marking Police Day, Bozinovic said security was not undermined "even during the tourist season." "With a set of new operative solutions and models of their implementation, the police have adjusted to changes in the commission of crimes caused by the epidemic, paying special attention to domestic violence and vulnerable groups." Bozinovic said illegal migration and the smuggling networks connected to them became…

ZAGREB, Sept 29, 2020 - Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic said on Tuesday that parliamentary Domestic Policy and National Security Committee chair Niksa Vukas would receive a report on information leaks and that he could always contact the ministry and the police. Speaking to the press, Bozinovic said Vukas "can ask and will receive an answer, probably to the effect that DORH (State Prosecutor's Office) and the police are conducting preliminary investigations. They are doing that and they will inform the public about the results." Vukas said this morning that he would request Bozinovic's comment on the situation in the system, surveillance breaches and…

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes on the 28th of September, 2020, the Croatian Ministry of Tourism and Sport has become active on social networks, through which they plan to strengthen communication with the sector and the public, both in tourism and in the sport segment, which also suffered significantly in the ongoing coronavirus crisis. After the launch of their pages on Facebook and Twitter, the launch of an Instagram and a Linkedin account is being prepared in the coming days, announced Ivana Crnic, the spokesperson of the aforementioned Croatian ministry who is leading the project. "The idea is to connect…